The policy set forth in this section is intended to define the rights of individuals and entities to have access to academic personnel records. This policy is intended to protect academic employees from unwarranted invasion of their personal privacy, as well as to specify their rights of access to their own personnel records; and to make corrections, deletions, or additions to these records.

University policy and state and federal laws recognize the individual’s rights to privacy, as well as the public’s right to know about the governance of public institutions.

The State of California Information Practices Act of 1977 guarantees certain legal rights to privacy by establishing strict limits to access to information about an individual which is maintained by a public entity, such as the University of California, whether that access is by a governmental agency, a private corporation, a member of the public, or an employee of the same public entity.

Under the California Public Records Act, records maintained by the University generally are public records and are subject to inspection by any person upon request unless specifically exempted under the law from disclosure. One of the exemptions includes records the disclosure of which would involve an unwarranted invasion of an individual’s personal privacy. The Faculty Code of Conduct (Part II.D.3.) as approved by the Assembly of the Academic Senate and incorporated into the official document, "University Policy on Faculty Conduct and the Administration of Discipline," initially adopted by The Regents in June, 1974 and subsequently amended, specifies that among types of unacceptable faculty conduct is "breach of established rules governing confidentiality in personnel procedures." This part of the Faculty Code recognizes the importance of the right to privacy of an individual undergoing a personnel review and of the right to privacy of persons who furnish, in confidence, evaluations of individuals under review.

B. Definition of Types of Information Maintained by the University about Academic Employees

1. "Confidential Academic Review Records" are:

1. a letter of evaluation or other statement pertaining to an individual received by the University with the understanding that the identity of the author of the letter or statement will be held in confidence to the extent permissible by law;
2. a letter from the Chairperson (or equivalent officer) setting forth a personal recommendation in connection with an academic personnel action concerning the individual, such as an appointment, promotion, merit increase, appraisal, reappointment, non-reappointment, or terminal appointment;
3. reports, recommendations, and other related documents from campus and departmental ad hoc committees concerning evaluations of the individual under applicable University criteria in connection with an academic personnel action, such as an appointment, promotion, merit increase, appraisal, reappointment, non-reappointment, or terminal appointment; and
4. information placed in the review file by a department chair that provides reference to the scholarly credentials of individuals who have submitted letters of evaluation or their relationship to the candidate.

2. "Non-Confidential Academic Review Records" are:

1. a letter from the Chairperson (or equivalent officer) setting forth a departmental recommendation in connection with an academic personnel action concerning the individual, such as an appointment, promotion, merit increase, appraisal, reappointment, non-reappointment, or terminal appointment;
2. reports, recommendations, and other related documents from administrative officers and standing personnel committees concerning evaluation of the individual under applicable University criteria in connection with an academic personnel action, such as an appointment, promotion, merit increase, appraisal, reappointment, non-reappointment, or terminal appointment.

3. Confidential Information

"Confidential Information" although generally not a part of an academic review file, is occasionally maintained by the University, and includes, but is not limited by law to, medical, psychological, or health care information about an individual.

4. Non-Personal Academic Personnel Information

"Non-Personal" academic personnel information is limited to that information which could not, in any reasonable way, reflect or convey anything detrimental to an individual’s rights, benefits, or privileges, such as:

1. individual’s name;
2. date of hire;
3. current position title;
4. current rate of pay;
5. organizational unit assignment including office address and telephone number;
6. full-time, part-time, or other employment status; and
7. certain other employment information required to be released to the public as determined on a case-by-case basis by the General Counsel and the Senior Vice President--Academic Affairs.

5. Personal Information

"Personal" information is any information about an individual that is not defined as "Confidential" or "Non-Personal" and the disclosure of which would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy of the individual.

1. In any of the academic personnel records pertaining to an individual, including the individual’s personnel review file, all documents other than confidential academic review records as defined in APM-160-20-b(1) shall be accessible at reasonable times for inspection by the individual to whom the record pertains (including the right to receive the first copy of such material free, and subsequent copies at reasonable cost). Confidential academic review records shall be accessible, upon request, in redacted form as defined in APM-160-20-c(4). Access to confidential information as defined in APM-160-20-b(3) shall be in accord with legal requirements.
2. During the departmental review of an academic personnel action, an individual’s opportunity to inspect all documents to be included in the personnel review file is governed by APM-220-80-d.
3. In an ongoing personnel action, during the period between a departmental recommendation in a personnel action concerning the individual and the final administrative decision in that personnel action, access by the individual undergoing review to any letter of evaluation or report submitted by an individual, administrator, or committee shall be governed by APM-220-80-d, -e, -h, and -i.
4. When an individual requests access to confidential academic review records (as defined in APM-160-20-b(1)), the records shall be subject to redaction as follows:

1. for a letter of evaluation or statement from an individual evaluator, redaction shall consist of the removal of name, title, organizational/institutional affiliation, and relational information contained below the signature block of the letter of evaluation;
2. for reports or recommendations of an ad hoc committee, redaction shall consist of the removal of the names of individual members of the committee;
3. for information that references the scholarly credentials or relationship to the candidate of the authors of letters of evaluation, no access shall be provided to the individual;
4. for confidential documents (including individual, departmental, and administrative letters, as well as committee reports and recommendations) placed in an academic personnel review file prior to September 1, 1992, campuses may either:
   1. redact such documents to remove the identifier’s such as name, title, date, and organizational/institutional affiliation, or any relational statement or comment that would serve to identify the author(s) of the document; or
   2. prepare a comprehensive summary.

5. An individual’s rights to access "confidential" information about himself or herself referred to in APM-160-20-b(3) shall be in accordance with the legal requirements of the Information Practices Act of 1977.
6. The provisions of APM-160-20-c(2), (3) and (4) apply only to the following academic personnel titles and title series: Professor, Professor in Residence, Acting Professor, Adjunct Professor, Visiting Professor, Clinical Professor, University Professor, Professor of Clinical (X), Agronomist, Astronomer, Lecturer, Lecturer with Potential Security of Employment, Lecturer with Security of Employment, Senior Lecturer, Senior Lecturer with Potential Security of Employment, Senior Lecturer with Security of Employment, Professional Research, Specialist, Cooperative Extension Specialist (Advisor), Supervisor of Physical Education, Librarian.